Police along Interstate 80 will be out in force for the next week.Google Maps

Authorities in the 11 states that Interstate 80 travels though have an ambitious goal — go an entire week without a fatality on the more than 2,900 mile highway.

Police in the participating states, including New Jersey, are calling it the "I-80 Challenge" and it aims to raise the public's awareness about a rise in traffic fatalities during the summer, according to a report on MercuryNews.com.

There were 13 crashes resulting in 14 deaths on Interstate 80 in New Jersey in 2012. This year, there have been four crashes on I-80 in New Jersey resulting in four deaths. State Police say that's a nearly 43 percent decrease from this time last year.

An average of 50 fatalities per year have been recorded from 2001 to 2011 along the highway, which runs between Teaneck and Oakland, Calif., the report said.

The website reported the California Highway Patrol will be vigilant in watching for speeders and drivers not wearing their seat belts from Wednesday through July 31.

During that 10-year span 498 people have died on Interstate 80 nationwide and there were there were more than 77,842 collisions, an average of 21 per day, the report said.

Thirty percent of the fatal accidents on Interstate 80 in California involved the failure to wear a seat belt, 27 percent were alcohol-related, 22 percent were speed-related and 4 percent were attributed to distracted driving, according to the Mercury News.